Rocker shovel for underground mines



Oct. 18, 1966 A. TRIESCHMANN 3,279,630

ROCKER SHOVEL FOR UNDERGROUND MINES Filed Nov. 25, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.2

INVENTOR ALFRED TRIESCHMANN 94W WWW ATTORNEYS Oct. 18, 1966 A. TRIESCHMANN ROCKER SHOVEL FOR UNDERGROUND MINES 2 N RM e O m TM S NH v m R s w a a F L A Filed Nov. 23, 1964 AT TORNEYS Oct. 18, 1966 TRIESCHMANN ROCKER SHOVEL FOR UNDERGROUND MINES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Nov. 25, 1964 INVENTOR ALFRED TRIESCHMANN 1140 1 wpu ATTORNEYSv United States Patent ,918 4 Claims. (Cl. 21478) This invention relate-s to buttock rocker shovels, more particularly of the self-loading vehicle type, which consist of a motor unit and a loading unit filled by a number of movements of the shovel, of the kind used to an increasing extent in underground mines, more particularly in making headings and also in actual mining operations. With such loaders, the actual shovel, which has sidewalls at the ends and which is loaded by driving it beneath the debris, is swung up after loading and then pivoted in the rearward direction to the unloading position by an appropriate drive, the contents of the shovel being emptied into a receptacle on the loader unit. The bottom part of the shovel which is driven beneath the debris usually projects comparatively considerably from the actual body beyond the end edges of its sidewalls to give an appropriate loading capacity.

Accordingly, during the upward pivoting movement of the shovel, the end edge thereof describes a circle of appropriate radius about the pivot axis. The radius of this circle determines the minimum height of the road or gallery or the like, for example, in which the shovel can be used, and hence restricts its application to areas of an appropriate height.

The invention obviates this disadvantage of known rocker shovels which necessitates the use of smaller loaders or a reduction of loading capacity in the case of low seams.

To this end, according to the invention, the shovel, which is pivotable out of the loading into the unloading position and vice-versa about its transverse axis, is so constructed .that its edge projects beyond the shovel sidewalls and the projecting edge, which is locked in position with respect to the bottom of the shovel during the shovel loading operation is retractable or adapted to pivot inwards by means controlled in accordance with the beginning of th upward pivoting movement of the shovel.

This inward pivoting movement after the completion of the shovel loading operation can be and preferably is controlled by guide rails which are disposed on the loader frame and which cooperate with stops on the inwardly pivoting part of the shovel, said stops running on said guide rails. According to another embodiment of the invention, to this end, reversible pressure cylinders are used which are disposed on the shovel on each side thereof and which are actuated upon the upward pivoting movement of the shovel. In either case, the inward pivoting movement of the projecting end of the shovel is so controlled that this operation is delayed in relation to the beginning of the upward pivoting movement of the shovel so as to avoid the inward pivoting of the shovel end before the latter has cleared the debris, since this would otherwise seriously interfere with the filling operation.

To ensure this, in the last embodiment, the pressure medium pipe actuating the cylinder for the shovel end pivoting movement can contain a hydraulic choke.

According to a second embodiment of the principle according to the invention, the projecting end zone of the shovel bottom which is driven beneath the debris is retractable and extensible substantially in the plane of the shovel bottom, again preferably by reversible pressure cylinders. in such cases, another advantage over known loaders of the type to which the invention relates is that Patented Oct. 18, 1966 the shovel loading operation can be carried out not or not only by driving the entire loader forward, but completely or at least partly by simply extending the iront zone of the shovel bottom, whose length in either the first or second embodiments of the invention is no longer limited by considerations of overall height.

An example of a loader according to the first embodiment of the invention is shown in the drawings, wherein:

FIGS. 1 and 2 are side and plan views respectively of the loader, those parts which are not essential to an understanding of the invention having been omitted.

FIG. 3 is a side view of another embodiment similar to the loader illustrated in FIG. 1 but on a larger scale, showing the upward pivoting movement of the shovel constructed according to the second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a similar view to FIG. 3 showing the embodiment with a retractable and extensible construction for the shovel edge.

The rocker shovel shown in FIG. 1 comprises a motor unit a and the loader unit b appropriately coupled there- IO.

The loader runs on rubber tired wheels 0. The loader unit wheel axle d is at the same time the pivot axis for the conventional loading shovel e. The zone 1 of the shovel extending beyond the end edges of the shovel side walls is driven beneath the debris and is appropriately articulated to the rear bottom zone h of the shovel at g Double-acting pressure cylinders 1', whose piston ends are articulated on rear projections k on the shovel are mounted on the outside of the shovel side walls.

FIG. 3 also shows the jack 1 for pivoting the shovel e.

The solid lines in FIG. 3 show the shovel in Stage I of the loading operation, while the chain-dotted lines show an intermediate position 11 and the broken lines show the end position III of the shovel on unloading and the inward pivoting movement of the articulated part f of the shovel will be apparent from the figure.

The drawing does not show the hydraulic piping not the choke provided in the pipe to the cylinder 1.

No explanation is required for FIG. 4 which clearly shows the retractable and extensible construction of the shovel edge f. The solid lines show the shovel in the loading position with the edge extended while the, broken lines show the edge retracted.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described in detail hereinbefore and illustrated in the drawings; modifications thereof are possible with-out departing from the basic idea of the invention.

vIn particular, the principle of the invention can be applied to buttock loaders of a type other than the selfloading vehicle specifically described hereinbefore and illustrated in the example.

I claim:

1. A material loading apparatus comprising in combination, an open ended body unit defining a receptacle for receiving the material, a shovel member pivotally mounted on said unit at its open end, drive means for angularly rotating said shovel member whereby to load material into said receptacle, said shovel member having opposed side wall members connected by a base member and an edge member pivotally mounted on said base member, and further drive means for pivoting said edge member from a first position in which it projects beyond said side wall members to a second position in which it is retracted, substantially within said sidewalls said edge member being in said first position during loading of said shovel member and in said second position during angular rotation of said shovel member to transfer the loaded material to said receptacle.

2. A material loading apparatus comprising in combination, a body unit defining a receptacle for the material, a shovel member pivotally mounted on said unit, hydraulically operated drive means for angularly rotating said shovel member in an upwards direction whereby to load material into said receptacle, said shovel member having side wall members, a base member and an edge member movably mounted on said base member, and further hydraulically operated drive means for moving said edge member from a first position in which it projects beyond said sidewall members to a second position in which it is retracted substantially within said sidewall members, said edge member being moved after commencement of the upward pivotal movement of said shovel member.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said further drive means includes reversible hydraulic cylinders mounted on each side wall member and on said edge member.

4. A material loading apparatus comprising in combination, an open ended body unit having longitudinal Wall members, an end wall member and a bottom member defining a receptacle for said material, a shovel member pivotally mounted on said longitudinal wall members toward said base member, hydraulically operated drive 4 means including hydraulic piston and cylinder devices for upwardly pivoting said shovel member whereby to load material into said receptacle, said shovel memberhaving opposed side wall members, a base member and an edge member movably mounted on said base member, and further hydraulically ope-rated drive means including hydraulic piston and cylinder devices for moving said edge References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATE PATENTS 2,518,471 8/1950 Hayes 214-78 2,606,013 8/ 1952 Acker. 2,828,558 4/1958 Reinhard 37-141 GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner.

ROBERT G. SHERIDAN, Examiner. 

1. A MATERIAL LOADING APPARATUS COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, AN OPEN ENDED BODY UNIT DEFINING RECEPTACLE FOR RECEIVING THE MATERIAL, A SHOVEL MEMBER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID UNIT AT ITS OPEN END, DRIVE MEANS FOR ANGULARLY ROTATING SAID SHOVEL MEMBER WHEREBY TO LOAD MATERIAL INTO SAID RECEPTACLE, SAID SHOVEL MEMBER HAVING OPPOSED SIDE WALL MEMBERS CONNECTED BY A BASE MEMBER AND AN EDGE MEMBER PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID BASE MEMBER, AND FURTHER DRIVE MEANS FOR PIVOTING SAID EDGE MEMBER FROM A FIRST POSITION IN WHICH IT PROJECTS BEYOND SAID SIDE WALL MEMBERS TO A SECOND POSITION IN WHICH IT IS RETRACTED, SUBSTANTIALLY WITHIN SAID SIDEWALLS SAID EDGE MEMBER BEING IN SAID FIRST POSITION DURING LOADING OF SAID SHOVEL MEMBER AND IN SAID SECOND POSITION DURING ANGULAR ROTATION OF SAID SHOVEL MEMBER TO TRANSFER THE LOADED MATERIAL TO SAID RECEPTACLE. 